June 2012

SFI Program Update: June 2012

Larry Selzer's Keynote on YouTube

Larry Selzer recently gave the keynote address, to the Gravure Association of America's 8th Environmental Workshop on Sustainability of Print: Forests, Paper and Beyond. Larry - who is Vice-Chair of the SFI Board of Directors and President and CEO of The Conservation Fund- spoke of forests as infrastructure, the role of forest certification, standing up to market campaigns, and connecting children with nature to ensure we have leaders into the future that understand the value of maintaining healthy forests and lifestyles. Check out what Larry and other members of the SFI community are saying on our YouTube site.

Our Decisions Today Affect Our Forests Tomorrow

Join us for our SFI 2012 Annual Conference in Milwaukee, WI, Sept. 11 to 13. An impressive lineup of speakers - including author and free-market environmental policy expert Todd Myers - will show how market and management decisions today can keep forests healthy and rural communities strong now and into the future. Register now so you can show how much you care about the future of North America's forests.

Read our 2012 SFI Progress Report that shows how past decisions by SFI and its many partners have led to a brighter and more responsible future for forest resources.

SFI Weighs in on Forest Roads and BMPs

Building on recent court disputes, the U.S. EPA issued a Notice of Intent on May 23 specifying that permits are not required for stormwater discharge from logging roads and maintaining the approach of using Best Management Practices (BMPs) for water quality to regulate forest road systems. EPA stated "on private forestlands, significant BMP implementation can be attributed to growing involvement of forest owners in sustainable forestry certification programs." EPA's notice specifically recognizes SFI's requirements that companies meet or exceed state BMPs on company owned forest land. SFI submitted comments in support of this approach, outlining how the SFI program has advanced implementation of BMPS and knowledge about their effectiveness in numerous ways, including requirements for BMP compliance, logger training, landowner outreach, and support for research. Since passage of the Clean Water Act in 1972, the EPA has held the position that forestry activities, including forest roads, are nonpoint sources and should be regulated through state BMPs rather than by federal permits. EPA's position was challenged in a court case in 2006 that led to the Ninth Circuit ruling that forest roads and their stormwater runoff systems are point sources requiring permits. The Supreme Court this week announced that they will take up the case this fall, which would bring legal certainty to the debate.

SFI-Certified Products Used For
Alabama Boy Scout Hut

When the memorandum of mutual support between the Boy Scouts of America and SFI was announced, we discovered there are already a lot of exciting activities in the works. Tyler Allgood, a student at Auburn University School of Architecture, is working with a team from the school's Rural Studio program to design a Boy Scout Hut in a Greensboro, AL, city park. Tyler's father Grover Allgood, whose family sawmill McShan Lumber has SFI fiber sourcing and chain-of-custody certification, says local SFI participants and the Alabama SFI Implementation Committee have donated certified materials to Rural Studio for projects such as the Boy Scout Hut. We'd love to hear about any activities you're involved in with local Scout troops.

LEED Vote Delayed

The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), which has just announced a one-year delay for the vote on its revised LEED language, continues to face criticism for its proposed wording for forest certification. Eight members of Congress sent a bipartisan letter to USGBC urging it to reconsider its position, and the high-profile Brietbart.com/Big Government website ran an article, LEED Refuses to Change Ratings While American Forests are Devalued, saying the proposed language for LEED "appears to be running in a direction polar opposite of what would benefit forest owners in America." USGBC has added a fifth public comment period from Oct. 2 to Dec. 10, 2012.

Conference Sponsors:

SFI Grant Helps Create Forest Legality Risk Tool

Thanks in part to an SFI Conservation and Community Partnerships Grant, international buyers of forest products now have a new tool to help them find their way through complex supply chains and exercise due care when buying fiber from legal sources. The World Resources Institute has launched the Forest Legality Risk Information Tool, an open-access global information website created with support from SFI and the U.S. Agency for International Development.

Government Recognizes SFI

As demand for certified products grows, multiple agencies and elected officials within the U.S. government are recognizing the value of third-party forest certification programs such as SFI. Read our updated Government Brochure to see what they have to say.

Victoria Lockhart has joined SFI as a Market Affairs Intern this summer, and will be working on market access issues for SFI-certified products as well as customer and government outreach. Victoria, who worked for the American Forest Foundation and the American Forest and Paper Association before returning to school, is currently a Master of Forestry Candidate at the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. She can be reached at victoria.lockhart@sfiprogram.org or 202.552.4717